Someday We'll Be Together

Chapter 5- The Basketball

"This has gotta be a dream," Max said.
They had just left the market and bought a newspaper.
He stopped a woman passing by:
"Excuse me, could you pinch me?"
The woman looked at Max strangely.
"What?"
"Could you please pinch me? It's important-"
Max couldn't finish his sentence before he was slapped in the face. As he held his face in pain, he remembered the slap he had received from Samantha. "It must be Samantha's mother," he thought to himself.
Just then, Tyler called out to Max.
"Hey Max, come here! You said you were interested in Atari."
Max ran over to Tyler. He couldn't believe his eyes. They were standing in front of an arcade, something he had only seen and envied in movies.
"Wow! Do you think they have the first version of Donkey Kong?"
As Tyler and Max excitedly entered the arcade, Lena was captivated by what she saw in the window of a clothing store. When she realized she was lagging behind Tyler and Max, it was too late. They were nowhere to be seen. So, she continued walking, looking around in fascination. She passed by a dance hall that was now a fitness center in 2008 and watched girls dancing in their famous 80s outfits. Then she crossed the street and walked through the park in front of the town hall. The basketball court next to the park was still there. The only difference was that there was no wire fence around it like there was in 2008. As Lena watched the men on the basketball court, she didn't notice herself walking onto the court and was hit hard on the head by a basketball. Lena fell to the ground and hit her head on the ground. The owner of the basketball was an 18-year-old boy who ran over to Lena, who was lying on the ground. He carried Lena to a shady area under the trees in the park and carefully laid her down with her head on the grass. Then he got up, wet the end of his T-shirt with cold water in the park fountain, and went back to Lena. He put Lena on his knees and wiped her face with the end of his T-shirt, which he had dipped in cold water. A few minutes later, Lena's eyes fluttered open and she murmured:
"Where am I?"
The boy smiled when he saw Lena wake up:
"I accidentally hit you in the head with a basketball a little while ago. I'm so sorry."
"Basketball?"
Lena sat up and looked at the boy standing in front of her. He had wavy hair and big green eyes that were looking at her.
"Are you okay?" the boy asked after a moment of staring.
"Yes, yes, I think I'm okay," Lena said, holding her head. The boy's face looked very familiar to her.
"I'm Michelangelo," the boy said, extending his hand to Lena.
"Michelangelo? That's so strange. My dad's name is Michelangelo too."
"You're the first person who's ever pronounced my name correctly," Michelangelo said, his eyes sparkling.
"They usually say Michaelangelo instead of Michelangelo."
Lena remembered her father saying the same thing many times. She noticed from the clothes of the people passing by that she was still in 1983. Just then, something happened that sounded too strange to be true.
"Michelangelo Fontana?"
Michelangelo looked at Lena in surprise.
"Do you know me?"
"You're my... you're my fa—"
"I don't know you, Britney... Spears," Michelangelo said, reading the name on Lena's bracelet from a Britney Spears magazine.
"Britney Spears?"
"Isn't your name Britney? It says so on your bracelet. Should I call you Brit or Britney or-"
"Lena. My name is Lena."
"Lena. Lena is a beautiful name. I've always wanted to name my daughter Lena if I ever had one."
"Ah... do you know where George W. Bush Street is? I remember it being in Lincoln Park, but I don't know exactly where."
"I'm sorry, I don't know anyone named George W. Bush. And I didn't know that park was named after Abraham Lincoln."
"How can you not know? Don't you know American President George W. Bush?"
"Well, maybe you're confusing him with President Ronald Reagan?"
Lena felt very stupid at that moment.
"Oh, of course. Ronald Reagan. George W. Bush is... my uncle's name."
"I think I really hurt your head," Michelangelo said, looking at Lena with concern.
"I think I'm just really hungry. I haven't eaten anything since morning."
"Why don't you have dinner with us then? I owe you for hurting you so badly."
"Oh, I don't know if that's a good idea," Lena said, backing away from where she was sitting.
"My mom always says that in these situations, it's the right thing to do to invite the person home for dinner."
"Mom..." Lena remembered. "Have you ever hit someone in the head with a basketball before?" she then asked.
"No. No, this is the first time it's ever happened to you."
"She hasn't met my mom yet," Lena thought.
"You seem very distracted, Lena. Are you sure you're okay?"
Lena looked at her father's 20-year-younger self.
"I-I'm fine," she said, holding her head. But before she could say anything else, she collapsed to the ground.